Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Roscoe Mitchell has said that the reason he stayed away from writing
orchestral works was because he thought that they wouldn’t get played. The
cause for his recent reconsideration is that so many offers were coming to
him to do concerts with different orchestras around the world, that it
allowed him to come into the orchestra on his own terms. ForDiscussions Mitchell selected 4 improvisations from his Conversations diptych with Craig Taborn and Kikanju Baku (FJC
reviews
here
and
here
) and had them commissioned for creative transcription by colleagues and
students for orchestra, performed here by 19 diverse musicians conducted by
Steed Cowart (Mitchell’s Mills College colleague). The remainder of the
album consists of two duets between Mitchell on sopranino saxophone and the
fantastic Mexican flautist Wilfrido Terrazas, as well as two collective
improvisations from the ensemble.

The album begins with ‘Cascade’, the avian-like dialogue between the sax
and flute resonates and scatters across the stereo field. Terrazas provides
swift runs and percussive pops as Mitchell strews the measures with shrill
contours and piercing counterpoint. ‘I’ll See You Out There’ from the album Conversations I is the first of the scored improvisation pieces.
The original is very sparse, just Mitchell on reeds and Craig Taborn on
piano. They merely suggest a structure, so spare is the instrumentation.
The orchestral version starts off quietly as well, with strings replacing
the piano parts; other woodwinds, brass, and percussion enter fluidly. The
mood of the original piece remains intact throughout, but this time around
there is much more ornamentation and drama. The piano introduces itself
only towards the end of the piece. ‘Discussions I’ is the first of two
improvisations by the ensemble. Horns bleat over tangles of color laid down
by the string, vibes, and flute. The piece becomes increasingly busy, with
new dialogues being started and others joined. The flutes and vibraphones
on this piece are particularly lovely, as they add airiness to the margins
that bring balance to Mitchell’s caustic sax runs. The use of the double
bass is more prominent in this track as well, with its understated notes
sounding off the piece. ‘Cracked Roses’ from Conversation I is the
second scored improvisation performed by the ensemble. Similar to ‘I’ll See
You Out There’ the original piece is skeletal, with Mitchell and Taborn
sketching soft shapes and contrasts against Baku’s drums, which supply the
piece with an anxious impetus. Again, listening to the two pieces
separately and back-to-back, the orchestral arrangement is incredibly
faithful to the original whilst developing on some of the ideas proposed in
the improvisation. Suggestions from the original are embellished in the
remake, careful listening is rewarded here. The forward propulsion of the
original rhythm is present, only with an orchestral percussion sound
palette.

‘Frenzy House’ from Conversations II is a study in timbres from
Mitchell over Baku’s hyperactive drums. Taborn’s presence is largely in the
background, embellishing the clatter with swelling electronics. The scored
performance retains the searching feel of Mitchell’s playing on the
original, but instead of his lone reed there are now a variety of
instruments probing the texture spectrum. The drums build and accent rather
than propel the track as vibes, piano, and strings highlight the structures
suggested by the original. ‘Home Screen’ is the second collective
improvisation from the ensemble. The way the instrumentalists navigate this
space is exceptional. There is so much communication and interplay within
the group it sounds cohesive. The amount of musical information presented
in the piece is striking; themes morph and meld into new themes with a
level of interplay verging on telepathic. ‘Discussions II’ finds Mitchell
and Terrazas resuming their conversation on flute and sopranino sax. It is
2 minutes of good hard solid dialogue between the instrumentalists. Lots of
intensity and again a tremendous number of ideas presented in such a
blistering way that it demands repeated listening. When the din of sound
subsides and the final piercing notes fade out, Mitchell can be heard
calmly and quietly saying ‘Ok, Ok Wilfrido, thanks man’, to which Terrazas
emphatically replies ‘Thank you!’

‘Who Dat’ from Conversations I is the liveliest of the four scored
improvs. Where the original sees Mitchell on various reeds dueling with
Taborn’s electronics and Batu’s rabid snare rolls and cymbal hiss, the
scored piece expands on these ideas radically with this 22 minute version
of the 6 ½ minute original. An intro of strings recedes into still space
occupied by vibraphone, chimes, and percussion pocked with Stockhausen
electronics. The brass brings commotion to the proceedings, and a
fantastically odd reinterpretation of Mitchell’s original lines on trombone
highlights the first half of the track. Brass and strings enter into heated
discourse before the piece again falls back to the halcyon and playful
dialogue of the electronics, vibes, and percussion. The strings and piano
pick back up the levels of buzz and connect in an active interchange with
the horns. The piece closes over percussion faithful to Baku’s roiling
performance on the original.

This review comes a bit late as this album was released last year but it’s
been worth taking the time to try and assess it properly. I hadn’t heard
the Conversations albums before writing this review, but as the
previous reviewer noted they are certainly worth your time. It was
especially gratifying (but not required) to have spent some time with those
records when listening to the scored reinterpretations of the originals on Discussions. With the exception of ‘Who Dat’, Mitchell selected
sparse pieces that merely suggest forms. Like the use of an underpainting,
the orchestral scores were built up on top of these suggestions and provide
unique expressions while retaining the ghosts of the originals. ‘Who Dat’
on the other hand takes the experimentalism of the original to new places,
and with that progresses the definition of orchestral music. The collective
improvisations on this album are well done and enjoyable, and the
orchestral performers sound like they enjoy the unique setting and the
freedom afforded by this type of music. Roscoe Mitchell continues create
art at the highest level, and it’s a remarkable thing that after so many
years of innovation he continues to produce some of the most forward
thinking music in the world.

1 comments:

This is a similar approach to what Roscoe did on Nessa's Ride the Wind, a 2018 recording with the Montreal-Toronto Art Orchestra which also draws from Conversations 1 and 2 as well as new compositions and Nonaah. The disc has extensive liner notes by Stuart Broomer that described how the fascinating process was realized and I believe makes references to this recording. I find the concept intriguing and plan on listening to the recordings for years and marvel at the work of a brilliant musician.